How are you dealing with life now with the Covid-19 virus situation? (1 Viewer)

[Mark Booth]

Yet another friend who reports fever, chills, body aches, congestion and cough. Symptoms started on Wednesday. He doesn't have any COVID tests at home.

Mark

 

[Robert Crawford]

My brother finally tested negative after 11 days. He was pretty sick until a few days ago. He lost 13 pounds. He said it was by far the sickest he’s ever been.

 

[Mark Booth]

Yet another friend who reports fever, chills, body aches, congestion and cough. Symptoms started on Wednesday. He doesn't have any COVID tests at home.

Mark

The friend mentioned above finally got his hands on some test kits yesterday (went to a drive-through pharmacy to pick them up). He tested positive. He said the test line turned red almost instantly.

He reports his fever got as high as 102.7 and he has had some significant diarrhea. He's completely lost his sense of smell (can't even smell things like perfume or aftershave) and can only taste things with the sharpest flavors.

He further admitted that, early on, he wasn't in a hurry to test himself because he was convinced it must be a flu bug (due to the diarrhea). Once he started losing his sense of smell and taste, well, he realized it must be COVID.

He said he hasn't been this sick in over 40 years. So much for so-called mild COVID. He started Paxlovid last night.

Mark

 

[Clinton McClure]

I lost smell and taste during my last bout with covid this past spring and didn’t get it back for a few weeks. It was a bit unsettling because nothing tasted like chicken anymore.

 

[Mark Booth]

What I don't understand is the "denial" that some people have regarding the possibility they may have COVID. Take my most recently mentioned friend for example. He said that having diarrhea made him believe it couldn't be COVID because diarrhea isn't a "common" symptom of COVID. Yet, all of the other symptoms were classic COVID symptoms. Way back on Wednesday, when he first reported the symptoms via text message, I encouraged him to test ASAP. Yet, he didn't bother going to get any test kits until Saturday (because he started losing his sense of smell and taste).

The very moment I had any single one of those other symptoms (fever, chills, cough, congestion, body aches), I'd have started testing. Perhaps if he tested earlier he could have started taking Paxlovid sooner and maybe he wouldn't have ended up feeling nearly as bad?

It's just freakin' common sense to TEST yourself. Why do so many have such a problem grasping that concept?

Mark

 

[Malcolm R]

It's just freakin' common sense to TEST yourself

Common sense is incredibly rare in the times we're living in.

 

[Mark Booth]

The friend currently taking Paxlovid reports (this morning) that he is experiencing some of the documented side effects of the anti-viral.. Loss of appetite, hoarseness to his voice, and sores in his mouth.

But he also reports feeling MUCH better yesterday and today compared to the weekend. Normal temperature, no body aches, and very minimal congestion. He says he is still tiring very easily.

Mark

 

[jayembee]

Or as the saying goes: "Common" sense...isn't...

 

[ManW_TheUncool]

Planning last minute to get my covid booster tomorrow... somewhat sooner than originally intended (in early-to-mid-Nov to help ensure protection coverage thru Chinese New Year in mid-Feb)... because I'm looking to make a quick, short trip (via bus) upto my alma mater (in the Finger Lakes region) for their peak foliage window next week, which I hadn't seen in over 30 years (and wouldn't otherwise for the typical big reunions they have each June nor "homecomings" in late-Sept)...

I could probably use the booster more nowadays anyway since I'm also regularly spending Friday evenings w/ church youths (amongst other potential exposures) going forward...

_Man_

 

[JohnRice]

What I don't understand is the "denial" that some people have regarding the possibility they may have COVID. Take my most recently mentioned friend for example. He said that having diarrhea made him believe it couldn't be COVID because diarrhea isn't a "common" symptom of COVID. Yet, all of the other symptoms were classic COVID symptoms. Way back on Wednesday, when he first reported the symptoms via text message, I encouraged him to test ASAP. Yet, he didn't bother going to get any test kits until Saturday (because he started losing his sense of smell and taste).

The very moment I had any single one of those other symptoms (fever, chills, cough, congestion, body aches), I'd have started testing. Perhaps if he tested earlier he could have started taking Paxlovid sooner and maybe he wouldn't have ended up feeling nearly as bad?

It's just freakin' common sense to TEST yourself. Why do so many have such a problem grasping that concept?

Mark

Respiratory infections typically can get into your digestive system. That should be pretty well known. It usually doesn’t happen, but it definitely can. The tissue is basically the same, and vulnerable to to similar things.

As far as symptoms being “mild”, my understanding is in the medical field, I you don’t end up in the hospital, it’s generally considered “mild”.

I finally got both shots today. It turned out my insurance didn’t allow the pharmacy I scheduled last week to do them. No symptoms so far, other than a little tingling. I expect that arm will get sore.

 

[jayembee]

Dodged a bullet.

My wife was out in California for a work thing this week (I was going to go with, but for reasons ended up not going). When she called Wednesday night, she mentioned feeling out of sorts. Sinuses clogged, sore throat, headache. She felt like she was coming down with a cold. Since we both had the latest booster right at the end of last month, she was reasonably sure she didn't have Covid. But, for the meeting she had on Thursday morning, before going to the airport to fly back home, she masked up. And stayed masked up on the plane. I picked her up after midnight, armed with a thermos of lemon-ginger tea. As soon as we got home, she pulled out a Covid test kit just to be sure. She tested negative, thankfully. But she's been snoozing on the sofa all day today.

 

[Malcolm R]

Since we both had the latest booster right at the end of last month, she was reasonably sure she didn't have Covid.

The vaccine won't necessarily prevent you from contracting the virus, but hopefully will lessen the symptoms if you do.

Could be possible she did have Covid, but having had the vaccine it lessened the symptoms and virus load enough that she didn't test as positive. But who knows?

 

[jayembee]

That was our thought, which is why she tested herself. Then again, it could be just a cold. Those have been known to happen.

 

[Josh Steinberg]

Sinuses clogged, sore throat, headache. She felt like she was coming down with a cold.

There’s some non-Covid cold making the rounds in my kids’ school that’s giving the kids runny nose and ear infection symptoms and giving the adults something that feels 100x worse. That’s been fun. Hope she feels better soon!

 

[Malcolm R]

There’s some non-Covid cold making the rounds in my kids’ school that’s giving the kids runny nose and ear infection symptoms and giving the adults something that feels 100x worse.

It's the cooties!

 

[JohnRice]

FWIW, my first time dual vax went fine. Very little soreness, but I have been very sleepy all day. I took the day off, and if I had gone to work, I’m sure I just would have been tired. The fact is, on days off when I don’t actively occupy myself with something, I tend to get rather sleepy these days anyway.

 

[Mark Booth]

Dodged a bullet.

My wife was out in California for a work thing this week (I was going to go with, but for reasons ended up not going). When she called Wednesday night, she mentioned feeling out of sorts. Sinuses clogged, sore throat, headache. She felt like she was coming down with a cold. Since we both had the latest booster right at the end of last month, she was reasonably sure she didn't have Covid. But, for the meeting she had on Thursday morning, before going to the airport to fly back home, she masked up. And stayed masked up on the plane. I picked her up after midnight, armed with a thermos of lemon-ginger tea. As soon as we got home, she pulled out a Covid test kit just to be sure. She tested negative, thankfully. But she's been snoozing on the sofa all day today.

She should test again. Even if symptomatic, it can take 1-3 days to test positive. I hope the tests stay negative.

Mark

 

[Jake Lipson]

What I don't understand is the "denial" that some people have regarding the possibility they may have COVID.

It's just freakin' common sense to TEST yourself. Why do so many have such a problem grasping that concept?

Because they don't want to have COVID. They want to think that the disease is over and that things have gone back to normal. It is more convenient for them to explain it away as something else than it is to have it, so they think they don't.

 

[jayembee]

She should test again. Even if symptomatic, it can take 1-3 days to test positive. I hope the tests stay negative.

By the by, she did re-test. Still negative. She especially wanted to make sure she was OK to visit her parents again.

 

[Carlo_M]

3 hours in and both shoulders have the same shot-site pain the previous jabs gave me. I decided to get it done in the early evening so I'd be asleep for most of the soreness. We'll see what the morning brings.